Related papers: Element Abundance Determination in Hot Evolved Sta…

We present a first systematic investigation of the iron abundance in very hot (Teff>50,000K) hydrogen-deficient post-AGB stars. Our sample comprises 16 PG1159 stars and four DO white dwarfs. We use recent FUSE observations as well as HST…

We performed an iron abundance determination of the hot, hydrogen deficient post-AGB star PG1159-035, which is the prototype of the PG1159 spectral class and the GW Vir pulsators, and of two related objects (PG1520+525, PG1144+005), based…

Over an interval of 120 years, the extraordinary object FG Sge has been transformed from a hot post-AGB star to a very luminous cool supergiant. Theoretically, this evolution has been associated with the reignition of a helium-shell during…

An analysis of high-resolution near-infrared spectra of a sample of 45 asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars towards the Galactic bulge is presented. The sample consists of two subsamples, a larger one in the inner and intermediate bulge, and…

It is now clear that abundance variations from star-to-star among the light elements, particularly C, N, O, Na and Al, are ubiquitous within galactic globular clusters; they appear seen whenever data of high quality is obtained for a…

Helium has been proposed as the key element to interpret the observed multiple main sequences (MS), subgiant branches (SGB) and red giant branches (RGB), as well as the complex horizontal branch (HB) morphology in Globular Clusters (GC).…

We report the first discovery of argon in hot evolved stars and white dwarfs. We have identified the ArVII 1063.55A line in some of the hottest known (Teff=95000-110000 K) central stars of planetary nebulae and (pre-) white dwarfs of…

Ground- and space-based observations of stellar heavy element abundances are providing a clearer picture of the chemical evolution of the Galaxy. A large number of (r)apid and (s)low neutron capture process elements, including the first…

Boron abundances in A- and B-type stars may be a successful way to track evolutionary effects in these hot stars. The light elements -- Li, Be, and B -- are tracers of exposure to temperatures more moderate than those in which the H-burning…

We present the result of differential spectral analyses of a further four apparently normal B-type stars. Abundance anomalies (e.g. He, C, N enrichment), slow rotation and/or high gravities suggest that the programme stars are evolved…

To better understand the mixing and mass loss experienced by low-mass stars as they ascend the asymptotic giant branch (AGB), I have gathered from the literature the abundances of CNO and s-process elements in post-AGB stars in Galactic…

We present a chemical abundance analysis on the basis of high signal-to- noise and high resolution spectra for 12 stars of our newly defined sample. The selection criterion for the stars of this sample was their position in the `RV Tauri'…

As part of the Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury (PHAT) multi-cycle program, we observed a 12' \times 6.5' area of the bulge of M31 with the WFC3/UVIS filters F275W and F336W. From these data we have assembled a sample of \sim4000…

Abundances of about 18 elements including the heavy elements Y and Zr are determined from Hubble Space Telescope Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph ultraviolet spectra of seven extreme helium stars (EHes): LSE 78, BD+10 2179, V1920 Cyg,…

The formation of sdBs is still puzzling, as is the chemical composition of their atmospheres. While helium and other light elements are depleted relative to solar values, heavy elements are highly enriched. Diffusion processes in the hot,…

A broad array of interstellar absorption features that appear in the ultraviolet spectra of bright sources allows us to measure the abundances and ionization states of many important heavy elements that exist as free atoms in the…

95% of all stars end their lives as white dwarfs. About 20% of the hot post-AGB stars are hydrogen deficient. Most of these are the result of a late helium-shell flash, but the evolutionary status of a fraction of about 10-20% of the…

We previously determined abundances of He, C, N, O, and Ne for a sample of planetary nebulae (PNe) representing a broad range in progenitor mass and metallicity, and we now compare them with theoretical predictions of PNe abundances from a…

In the past years we have made great efforts to reduce the statistical and systematic uncertainties in stellar parameter and chemical abundance determinations of early B-type stars. Both the construction of robust model atoms for non-LTE…

The puzzling origin of the ``UV-upturn'' phenomenon, observed in some elliptical galaxies, has recently been settled by identifying hot HB stars as main contributors to galaxy ultraviolet luminosity excess. While a blue HB morphology seems…